Explosive and method of producing same.



HAROLD HIBBERT, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA.

No Drawing.

To all it may concern Be it known that I, HAROLD Hmnnm, a subject of Great Britain, residing 1n Plttsburgh', Allegheny county, State of Pennsyl- Vania, have invented certain new and. use ful Improvements in Explosives and Methods of Producing Same; and I dohereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others'skilled in the artto which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to the production of explosives and of explosive compositions from polyglycols or mixture of polyglycols, either alone or .in admixture with glycols, glycerin, etc., by nitration.

The present invention is based 'upon the discovery that explosive compositions of valuable properties and characteristics can be obtained by thenitratign of polyglycols.

The resulting nitrated-polyglycol explosives I are characterized by a low freezing point, and by viscosities which adapt them particularly for certain purposes, such as compounding with other explosive ingredients.

When theindividual glycols, or mixtures of glycols, are heated to relatively hightemperatures, for considerable eriods of time, or are treated with a suitable condensing agent or catalytic, they combine, with elimination of water, to form the diglycols, triglycols; etc;, which are herein referred to, generically, as polyglycols. Where a. single glycol is condensed the resulting polyglycol will, of course, be formed from two or more molecules of this glycol by the elimination of water. Where a mix; ture of glycols is condensed, the resulting. polyglycol mixture may be made up of the polyglycols from the'individual glycols, or of condensation products of difl'erent glycols with each other. Usually, only a part of the glycol or glycols will be condensed to polyglycols, and the resulting'product will accordingl be made up ofa mixture of glycols with polyglycols, in which mix-. ture the polyglycols may be present to the extent of only a few per cent. ,'orof a much larger per cent; Where the individual polyglycols are desired, they may be isolated from-admixture with the glycols and other polyglycols, or they may be produced by other suitable means. v

The particular method of producing the -with the un'condensed glycol or EXPLOSIVE ANT). METHOD OF PRODUCING- SAME.

v m Specification of Letters Patent.

.Patenteu Jan. 23, 1917.

Application filedJ'anuary 10, 1916. Serial No. 71,217.

glycols and the polyglycols forms no part of the present invention, and accordingly any suitable method may be utilized for their production.

In my application, Serial No. 9774:, filed February 23,1915, I have described the production of a mixture of ethylene, propylene and butylene glycols from oil gas, by subjecting the oil gas to a cracking operation, chlorinating the resulting unsaturated derivatives and converting the chlorinated compounds into the glycols by heating with an aqueous solution of sodium carbonate.

This mixture of glycols, when condensed and converted in. partinto polyglycols,

forms a particularly valuable mlxture of polyglycols with glycols for use in producing the novel nitrated-polyglycol explosivefof the present invention. 1

Another valuable source of the individual ethylene glycol is ordinary grain or ethyl alcohol, 'which can-be converted into ethylene, thence into the chlorine derivative, and finally into the ethylene glycol. The ethylene glycol can then be condensed to produce a mixture thereof with the polyglycol or glycols by heating or by the action of a condensing agent or a catalytic.

The polyglycol or mixture of polyglycols, or the mixture of one or more glycols, 1s subjected to the action of a mixture of con centrated sulfuric and nitric acids, such as are used for the manufacture of nitroglycerin, and there is produced a mixture of nitrated-polyglycols or of nitratedpolyglycols with nitrated-glycol's, which represents a very stable product and one which forms a valuable substitute for nitropolyglycols H glycerin. These ,nitrated-polyglycol explosives, however, have the advantage of low.

volatilization and of low freezing point. The novel nitrated-polyglycol explosives of the present invention not only form valuablesubstitutes for nitroglycerin but they can be used as a partial substitute for nitroglycerin and mixed therewith in varyingproportions. In order to produce such a mixture of nitroglycerin with the nitratedpolyglycols the glycerin may, with advantage, be mixed with the polyglycolsbefore nitration, and nitrated simultaneously therewith. Inasmuch as'the nitration process of the polyglycols has proven to be similar to,

or substantially the same as, that of nitrating glycerin, the nitrating process proceeds smoothly to give the desired nitrated mix ture.

The nitrated polyglycol explosive of the present invention, whether made from the individual polyglycols or mixtures of one or more thereof with glycols or glycerin or other explosive constituents, can be used in the explosive art in various ways. They may thus be absorbed by porous materials in much the same manner that nitroglycerin is absorbed. One particularly advantageous application of the nitrated-polyglycol explosive is its utilization as a solvent of nitrocellulose. Nitro-cellulose dissolves in the liquid nitrated-polyglycol mixtures to form a colloid of a stable nature and of materially improved properties as compared with the product-obtained by dissolving nitro-cellulose in nitroglycerin. I

The following specific example further illustrates the invention: A mixture of one part of glycols and polyglycols, containing about to of polyglycols, is nitrated by adding it slowly to a mixture of 8 times its weight of a nitrating acid of the following composition:

H so, 58.63% HNO 27.10% H O 14.27%

previously cooled to around +5 C. After the addition of the glycol-polyglycol mixture has been completed it is stirred for another 10 minutes in order to complete the nitration and then allowed to stand for a short period in order to bring about a separation of the nitrated product from the nitrating acid. After washing the nitrated product, first with water, then with dilute b'i-carbonate solution, and again -with pure Water, the same may then be utilized directly for the manufacture of explosives by incorporating 3 with sodium or potassium nitrate and wood pulp in the usual manner. Ifdesired to use this mixture in connection with the manu facture of nitro-cellulose powders this can with advantage be done by incorporating 6 I parts of this nitrated product with about 9 parts nitrocellulose, adding thereto about five one-hundredths of a per cent. of diphenylamin and incorporating the mixture in the usual gelatininzing machine. The 5 gelatinized product may then be passed through a suitable die or transformed into any desired shape suitable .to the purpose in view.

The nitrated-polyglycol explosives can .of 0 course be compounded with other explosive ingredients or constituents including inor-. ganic oxidizing agents where these are of importance in the explosive composition. Accordingly, Irefer to the nitrated-polyglycol 5 explosive, generically, as including not only relatively non-volatile nature and of the isolated nitrated-polyglycols and their mixtures with each other and with nitrated glycols and nitro-glycerins, but also their 3. An explosive comprising a mixture of nitrated polyglycols with intrated glycols, said explosive being a stable product of a ow freezing point; substantially as described.

4. An explosive comprising a nitrated mixture of ethylene, propylene and butylene glycols and nitrated polyglycols, said explosive being a stable product of a relatively non-volatile nature and of low freezing point; substantially as described.

5. An explosive comprising a solution of nitro-cellulose in a nitrated polyglycol, said explosive being a stable colloid of relatively non-volatile nature and of low freezing point; substantially as described.

6. An explosive comprising a solution of nitro-cellulose in a mixture 0 nitrated polyglycols, said explosivebeing a stable colloid of relatively non-volatile nature and of low freezing point; substantially as described.

7. An explosive .comprisin a solution of nitro-cellulose in a mixture 0% nitrated polyglycols with nitrated glycols, said explosive being a stable colloid of relatively non-volatile nature and of low freezing point; substantially as described. I

8. An explosive comprisinga' s'glution of nitro-cellulose in a nitrated mixture of ethylene, propylene and butylene glycols and nitrated polyglycols, said explosive being a stable product of a relatively non-volatile nature and of low freezing'point'; substantially as described.

9. An explosive comprising a nitrated polyglycol in admixture with nitro-glycerin, said explosive being a stable product of a relatively non-volatile nature and of low freezing point; substantially as described.

10. An explosive comprising a nitrated mixture of ethylene, propylene and butylene glycols with nitratedpolyglycols and nitroglycerin, said explosive being a stable product of a relatively non-volatile nature and of low freezing point; substantially as described.

11. An explosive comprising'a solution of nitro-cellulose in a mixture of nitrated polyglycols and nitro-glycerin, said explosive belng a stable colloid of relatively non-volatlle nature and of low freezing point; substan-- tially as described. :3 12. An explosive comprising a solution of nitro-cellulose in a nitrated mixture of ethylene, propylene and butylene glycols with HAROLD HIBBERT. 

